D.  A, 


SPECIAL  REPORT  ON 


TEA  RAiSING  EN  SOUTH  CAROLINA 


1893 


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AGRIC.  PERT. 


U.S.  DEPARTMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE. 


AGRICULTURA 
SPECIAL  REPORTJI      LIBRARY, 


UNIVERSITY 
— OF— 

CALIFORNIA 


TEA-RAISING  IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA. 


CHAELES  U.  SHEPAED,  M.  D. 


FROM  THE  REPORT  OF  THE  SECRETAHY  OF  AGRICULTURE  FOR  1892. 


WASHING  TO^: 

GOVERNMENT    PRINTING    OFFICE. 
1893. 


U.S.  DEPARTMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE. 


SPECIAL  REPORT 


m-RAISING  IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA. 


BY 


CHARLES  U.  SHEPARD,  M.  D. 

M 


FROM  THE  REPORT  OF  THE  SECRETARY  OF  AGRICULTURE  FOR  1892. 


WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT   PRINTING   OFFICE. 
1893, 


Main  Lib. 
Agric.  Dept 


SPECIAL  REPORT  ON  TEA-RAISING  IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA. 


SIR:  In  compliance  with  the  suggestion  of  the  Assistant  Secretary 
of  Agriculture,  I  have  the  honor  to  submit  the  following  report  upon 
experiments  in  the  cultivation  of  the  tea  plant  at  the  Pinehurst 
Experimental  Tea  Garden,  near  Summer vi lie,  S.  0.  It  embraces,  also, 
certain  general  observations  regarding  the  varieties  grown,  yield,  profit 
and  loss,  and  an  account  of  the  damage  to  the  plants  by  the  winter  of 
1802-'93. 

Very  respectfully, 

CHARLES  U.  SHEPARD. 
Hon.  J.  M.  BUSK, 

Secretary. 


THE   TEA  PLANT  IN  THE   UNITED   STATES. 

The  first  tea  plant  in  this  section  was  set  out  by  the  French  botanist 
Michaux  in  1804,  at  Middleton  Barony,  on  the  Ashley  lllver,  and  dis- 
tant some  15  miles  from  Charleston;  with  it  was  planted  out  the  first 
representative  of  its  cousin ,  1  he  Camellia  japoniea.  As  I  saw  the  former 
a  lew  years  ago,  it  had  grown  into  a  small  tree  about  15  feet  in  height, 
while  of  the  latter  there  were  many  specimens  fully  twice  as  tall. 

The  publications  of  the  U.  S.  Patent  Office  and  the  U.  S.  Department 
of  Agriculture  record  the  results  of  many  subsequent  attempts  to  inau- 
gurate an  American  tea  industry.  Nor  is  it  strange  that  repeated 
failure  has  not  checked  the  ardor  of  those  experimenters  who  constantly 
enjoy  the  realization  that  their  climate  is  especially  favorable  for  the 
outdoor  cultivation  of  the  Camellia  japoniea,  Azalea  indica,  and  many 
other  subtropical  plants,  and  have  read  that  the  flora  of  the  tea-pro- 
ducing countries  of  the  East  finds,  to  a  certain  extent,  its  counterpart 
here.  The  little  patches  and,  in  some  instances,  larger  gardens  which 
have  resulted  from  these  attempts  have  produced  tea  of  fine  flavor, 
although  very  generally  devoid  of  that  strength  of  infusion  which  ap- 
pears to  constitute  a  most  desirable  quality  for  very  many  drinkers. 
It  may  be  presumed,  however,  that  this  failure  in  pungency  was  largely 
due  to  defective  curing,  and  especially  to  inadequate  rolling  of  the  leaf, 
in  consequence  of  which  the  cup  qualities  of  the  tea  were  not  fully 
developed.  So  far  as  is  generally  known,  it  remained  for  the  National 
Department  of  Agriculture  to  begin,  about  ten  years  ago,  the  first 
serious  attempt  to  produce  American  commercial  tea  on  a  scale  suffi- 
ciently large  to  arrive  at  a  decisive  result. 

The  retirement  from  office  of  Commissioner  William  G.  Le  Due,  to 
whose  great  interest  in  this  subject  the  inception  of  the  experiment  was 
duej  the  death  of  Mr.  John  Jackson,  under  whose  experienced  manage- 

627 


320961 


628      REPORT  OF  THE  SECRETARY  OF  AGRICULTURE. 


men  t  the  gaTderis^Vete^  established;  the  great  distance  of  the  station 
fromrits  source  of  management,  and  the  opinion  of  Commissioner  Georg 
<&.  L/briog:  tbat;^th£j<?liinatic  conditions  are  not  favorabJe  for  it"  (Re- 
port for  1883),  combined  to  cause  the  total  abandonment  by  the  Govern- 
ment of  the  gardens  which  it  had  established,  at  great  expense,  on  a 
portion  of  the  Newington  plantation,  and  only  a  mile  or  so  distant  from 
Pinehurst  farm,  which  also  constituted  a  part  of  the  same  large  estate. 

The  present  experimentation  owes  its  undertaking  to  the  belief  that 
the  previous  trials  to  produce  American  tea  were  arrested  before  reach- 
ing definite  conclusions;  that  more  careful  cultivation  and  preparation, 
which  might  be  the  result  of  a  lengthier  local  observation,  and  the  sub- 
sequent production  of  a  higher  class  of  teas,  might  reverse  the  generally 
entertained  opinion  that,  as  an  industry,  the  cultivation  of  tea  in  this 
country  must  always  prove  a  failure;  and  that,  if  successful,  this  new 
field  for  agricultural  enterprise  would  furnish  a  wide  and  comparatively 
easy  outdoor  employment  for  many  who  are  unequal  to  those  rougher 
operations  whose  accomplishment  under  a  summer's  sun  can  be  borne 
by  but  few  in  this  climate. 

It  needed  only  the  announcement  of  a  revival  of  tea  experiments  in 
this  country  to  excite  the  liveliest  interest  in  and  assistance  for  the 
undertaking.  The  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture,  under  the  direc- 
tion of  the  honorable  Secretary,  J.  M.  Rusk,  and  Assistant  Secretary, 
Edwin  Willits,  has  manifested  a  deep  concern  in  the  project,  and  has 
generously  borne  a  very  considerable  part  of  the  expenditure  for  pro- 
curing consignments  of  tea  seed  from  far  Asia.  The  Department  of 
State  has  kindly  issued  orders  to  its  consuls  at  the  tea  ports  to  obtain 
these  samples,  and  our  foreign  representatives  have  spared  no  effort  to 
secure  the  best  quality  of  seed.  At  our  own  chief  ports  and  marts  the 
most  experienced  tea-tasters  and  merchants  have  freely  given  their 
valuable  opinions  and  advice  on  the  samples  of  tea  which  have  been 
submitted  to  them,  and  the  press  has  spread  over  all  our  wide  land 
whatever  reports  have  appeared  concerning  the  progress  made. 

It  is  in  deference  to  this  general  interest  that  a  report  of  progress  is 
herewith  made,  with  the  intention  of  limiting  its  scope  to  the  consider- 
ation of  the  climatic  obstacles  which  have  been  regarded  as  insur- 
mountable, and  the  addition  of  some  of  the  experience  which  has  been 
gained  during  the  past  few  years  at  Pinehurst.  There  is  an  extensive 
tea  literature,  but  it  is  not  intended  to  reproduce  it  here.  Those  desir- 
ous of  gaining  a  general  knowledge  on  the  subject  are  referred  to  a 
lecture  by  Mr.  William  Saunders,  Superintendent  of  Gardens  and 
Grounds,  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture,  delivered  before  the  New 
York  Horticultural  Society  October  7,  1879,  and  constituting  Special 
Report  No.  18,  Department  of  Agriculture,  on  "Tea  Culture  as  a  Prob- 
able American  Industry;"  as  also  to  the  prize  monograph  of  Col.  Ed- 
ward Money,  a  The  Cultivation  and  Manufacture  of  Tea,"  4th  edition, 
1883,  London,  W.  B.  Whittingham  &  Co. 

REQUISITE   CONDITIONS  OF  THE   TEA  INDUSTRY. 

The  requisite  conditions  for  success  in  the  tea  industry  are  numerous; 
they  embrace  sentimental,  commercial,  and  agricultural  factors.  Under 
the  first  belongs  the  special  taste  of  the  people  who  are  to  be  asked  to 
buy  the  product.  Not  only  does  one  country  frequently  prefer  green 
to  black  tea,  or  vice  versa,  but  in  the  same  land  different  sections  de- 
mand different  sorts  or  "  blends."  Any  general  change  in  taste  is 
naturally  slow.  The  sentimental  factor  in  deciding  whether  a  tea  is  to 


SPECIAL  REPORT  ON  TEA-RAISING  IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA.       629 

its  liking"  is  the  final  judge,  so  far  as  the  success  of  any  particular 
sort  is  concerned.  u  DC  f/ustibus  non  est  disputandum."  Consequently, 
smd  from  the  outset  of  the  Pinehurst  experiments,  the  representation 
of  all  the  leading  varieties  has  been  sought  for,  and  to-day  there  are 
gardens  of  Japanese,  Chinese  (including  Formosa),  and  Assam  hybrid 
fro  in  Ceylonese  and  American  seed.  That  practically  all  are  not  rep- 
resented is  due  to  the  great  difficulty  experienced  in  procuring  sound 
wed  at  this  great  distance  from  their  sources.  By  carefully  adapting 
to  each  sort  the  manufacture  most  suited  to  develop  its  best  qualities, 
it  may  be  possible  to  offer  to  a  considerable  portion  of  the  community 
its  favorite  teas,  and  thus  to  secure  patronage,  and,  subsequently, 
profit. 

The  question  of  morals  does  not  extend  beyond  the  duty  of  the  Gov- 
ernment to  suppress  injurious  teas  or  to  expose  adulterations.  Of  the 
former,  excepting  the  usually  faced  green  teas,  there  appear  to  be  very 
few  on  the  American  market.* 

A  sufficient  reason  why  tea,  in  a  commercial  sense,  suffers  so  little 
adulteration  lies  in  the  cheapness  with  which  it  is  grown  in  some 
countries ;  there  is  hardly  anything  that  can  be  profitably  substituted  for 
it  without  speedy  detection.  That  an  immense  amount  of  trashy  tea 
is  sold  on  the  American  market  does  not  require  further  comment,  that 
fact  being  known  to  all. 

The  prominent  commercial  factor  is  competition  from  the  Asiatic  tea 
countries,  including  the  price  of  labor  there.  A  brief  consideration 
shows  that  the  cost  of  picking  tea  leaf  per  pound  of  the  cured  tea  (it 
takes  about  4  pounds  of  fresh  leaf  to  make  1  pound  of  cured  tea)  hardly 
exceeds  1  cent  in  Asia,  as  against  not  less  than  6  cents  here.  The  dif- 
ference, 5  cents,  constitutes  a  large  part  of  the  gross  price  which  the 
Asiatic  producer  receives  for  his  cheaper  grades.  The  long  transpor- 
tation costs  only  a  bagatelle,  say  1  to  2  cents  per  pound,  on  shipments  to 
American  markets.  As  the  production  of  American  teas  must  be  accom- 
plished at  a  price  which  shall  permit  them  to  be  offered,  at  our  main 
distributing  points,  at  least  on  a  parity  with  the  same  grades  of  foreign 
goods,  it  follows  that  it  is  idle  to  expect  to  compete  with  any  except 
the  superior  foreign  teas;  but  the  American  grower  should  realize  that 
with  an  increase  in  the  price  of  his  product  he  must  diminish  the  num- 
ber of  possible  purchasers.  Among  the  agricultural  conditions,  none 
exceeds  in  importance  that  of  climate;  and  it  will  be  well  to  reproduce 
here  the  following  rather  ominous  predictions  and  observations,  as 
they  probably  constitute  the  greatest  obstacle  to  our  success  in  the 
minds  of  most  persons.  Col.  Money  has  Avritten : 

The  climate  required  for  tea  is  a  hot,  damp  one.  As  a  rule,  a  good  tea  climate  is 
not  a  healthy  one.  The  rainfall  should  not  be  less  than  80  to  100  inches  per  annum, 
and  the  more  of  this  that  falls  in  the  early  part  of  the  year  the  bettor.  Any  climate 
which,  though  possessing  an  abundant  rainfall,  suffers  from  drought  in  the  early 
part  of  the  year  is  not,  ccrtcris  paribns,  so  good  as  one  where  the  rain  is  more  equally 
diffused.  As  any  drought  is  prejudicial  to  tea,  it  stands  to  reason  hot  winds  must 
be  very  bad.  These  winds  argue  great  aridity,  and  the  tea  plant  luxuriates  in  con- 
tinual moisture.  The  less  cold  weather  experienced  where  tea  is  the  better  for  the  plant. 
It  can  stand  and  will  grow  in  great  cold  (freezing  point  and  lower  in  winter  is  found 
in  some  places  where  tea  is),  but  I  do  not  think  it  will  ever  be  grown  to  a  profit  on 
such  sites.  That  tea  requires  a  temperate  climate  was  long  believed  and  acted  upon 
by  many  to  their  loss.  The  climate  can  not  be  too  hot  for  tea  if  the  heat  is  accom- 
panied with  moisture.  Tea  grown  in  temperate  climates,  such  as  moderate  eleva- 
tions in  the  Himalayas,  is  quite  different  to  the  tea  of  hot,  moist  climates,  such  as 
eastern  Bengal.  Some  people  like  it  better,  and  certainly  the  llavor  is  moredelicate; 

*  Fide  "  Foods  and  Food  Adulterants,"  Part  vn,  "Tea,  Coffee,  ami  Cocoa  Prep- 
arations." Bulletin  No.  13,  Division  of  Chemistry,  U.  S.  Department  of  Agricul- 
ture. 


630      REPORT  OF  THE  SECRETARY  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

but  it  is  very  much  weaker,  and  the  value  of  Indian  tea  (in  the  present  state  of  the 
home  market,  where  it  is  principally  used  for  giving  "body"  to  the  washy  stuff 
from  China)  consists  in  its  strength.  Another  all  important  point  in  fixing  on  a 
climate  for  tea  is  the  fact  that,  apart  from  the  strength,  the  yield  is  double  in  hot, 
moist  climes  what  it  is  in  comparatively  dry  and  temperate  ones.  A  really  pleasant 
climate  to  live  in  can  not  be  a  good  one  for  tea. 

Nevertheless,  in  describing  the  various  tea  districts  of  India,  Col. 
Money  does  not  hesitate  to  speak  highly  of  the  tea  produced  in  several 
of  the  elevated  and  more  temperate  climates,  as  for  example:  "The 
teas  produced  in  Kangra  (elevation  3,000  feet)  are  of  a  peculiarly  deli- 
cate flavor,  and  are  consequently  highly  esteemed  in  the  London  mar- 
ket.7' Or  again:  "Some  of  the  teas  (from  the  Neilgherries,  7,490  feet 
elevation)  have  sold  very  well  in  the  London  market,  for  as  regards 
delicacy  of  flavor  they  take  a  high  place."  And  in  reference  to  the  gen- 
erally elevated  Ceylon  tea  gardens,  he  remarks:  "I  believe,  take  it  all 
in  all,  Ceylon  tea  is  no  better  and  no  worse  than  Indian  teas." 

"Tea  Cultivation  in  India"  contains  the  following  reference  to  cli- 
mate: 

Tea,  it  may  be  premised,  will  grow  almost  anywhere,  but  not  very  many  climates 
will  enable  it  to  pay.  To  describe  the  best  climate  in  two  words,  we  point  confi- 
dently to  eastern  Bengal — a  hot,  moist  climate,  where  the  thermometer  in  the  shade 
never  exceeds  95°,  never  falls  below  55°;  where  the  rainfall  yearly  aggregates  100  to 
130  inches ;  where  there  is  never  any  long  drought,  but  where  rain  falls  at  reasonable 
intervals  all  the  year  round;  where  heavy  dews  are  frequent;  where  morning  fogs 
are  not  uncommon;  where  the  sun  shines  hot  in  an  atmosphere  perfectly  free  from 
dust;  whore  at  no  season  can  a  breath  of  hot  wind  be  felt;  where  light,  penetrating 
rain  is  more  common  than  furious  downpours.  Fever  and  tea  go  together.  It  may 
be  a  painful  fact  for  tea-planters,  but  it  is  no  less  true.  No  highly  successful  tea 
district  can  ever  be  a  healthy  one. 

Iii  at  least  partial  con tro version  of  the  preceding  quotations,  Mr. 
Armstrong  has  written  in  "Tea  Cultivation  in  Ceylon,"  as  follows: 

The  higher  the  elevation  the  less  rainfall  is  required,  and  vice  versa.  Light 
showers,  alternating  with  sun,  if  we  could  order  them  so,  would  give  us  1,000  pounds 
an  acre  at  5,000  feet  elevation.  The  higher  we  go  the  better  our  soil  must  be.  I 
have  known  many  instances  of  estates  up  to  3,000  feet  giving  400  to  600  pounds  per 
acre  up  to  5  years  of  age ;  and  at  4,000  to  5,000  feet,  from  360  to  420  pounds  per  acre. 

It  will  be  noted  that  these  yields  of  tea  are  exceptionally  good  and 
that  the  climate  at  the  latter  elevation  can  not  be  otherwise  than  tem- 
perate. 

But  granting  that  the  production  under  the  Assamese"  climatic  con- 
ditions is  exceedingly  favorable,  of  what  transcendent  importance  is  it 
if  the  public  dislikes  the  tea?  Mr.  Samuel  Baildon,  in  "The  Tea  In- 
dustry in  India,"  writes : 

Many  Indian  planters,  while  finding  their  teas  too  strong  for  their  own  drinking, 
have,  through  insufficiently  reasoning  the  matter  out.  thought  that  Indian  tea  might 
be  drunk  alone,  and  that  an  injustice  was  done  to  the  industry  in  using  their  teas 
for  fortifying  weaker  China  ones.  But  as  some  of  the  Indian  growths  are  much  too 
strong  for  use  by  themselves,  and  as  a  large  proportion  of  the  China  tea  imports  into 
England  require  strengthening,  these  strong  growths  from  India — which  can  not.be 
used  alone— are  valuable  for  giving  strength  to  inferior  Chinese  teas,  and  for  this 
reason  only.  Indian  teas  of  unpalatable  strength  predominate  over  those  of  medium 
strength.  "  Planters  whose  only  experience  of  Indian  tea  has  been  obtained  in  Assam, 
or  districts  where  the  strongest  kinds  are  grown,  have  no  idea  of  the  really  fine,  deli- 
cately flavored  teas  that  are  sent  to  England  from  other  districts — teas  that  undoubt- 
edly are  well  suite:!  for  drinking  alone.  I  well  know  the  regular  cries  about  Indian 
teas  being  far  more  economical  tuan  Chinese  ones,  and  I  believe  in  and  advocate  the 
practice  whenever  1  can,  but  only  as  applied  to  Neilgherry,  Kangra  Valley,  or  finer 
Darjeeiing  teas.  Some  of  the  produce  from  these  districts  is  delicious  and  possesses 
a  delicacy  of  flavor  which  can  not  be  compared  with  anything  coming  from  Assam. 

The  accompanying  table  exhibits  the  mean  monthly  temperature  and 
rainfall,  together  with  other  interesting  data,  of  the  climates  of  several 


SPECIAL  REPORT  OK  TEA-RAISING  IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA.       631 

of  tlie  most  important  Indian  tea  provinces;  of  Charleston,  S.  0.;  and 
of  some  Chinese  and  Japanese  stations.  It  is  interesting  to  compare 
the  Indian  and  Japanese  temperatures  andrainl'all  with  those  of  Charles* 
ton.  There  is  obviously  much  more  difference  in  the  annual  precipi- 
tatioii  of  moisture  than  in  the  mean  annual  temperature.  The  mean 
annual  temperature  of  Summoryille,  on  whose  outskirts  Ipinehurst  farm 
is  situated,  is  (55J°  for  the  past  sixteen  years.  It  is  hoped  to  ultimately 
establish  a  simple  meteorological  station  here.  The  maximum  temper* 
ature  of  104°  (July  12,  1879)  and  minimum  of  10°  (January  11,  1886) 
have  constituted  the  extremes  for  twenty-one  years  at  Charleston;  the 
average  date  of  the  latest  frost,  March  21,  and  of  the  earliest  frost, 
November  5,  also  for  the  same  period.  Neither,  in  regard  to  these  ob- 
servations, would  there  be  much  difference  between  Charleston  and 
Hummerville. 

Comparison  of  climate  of  Charleston,  S.  C.,  with  some  Asiatic  tea  climates. 


Latitude. 

Elevation  above 
sea. 

January. 

Fe  bruary. 

March. 

April. 

! 

1 
1 

I 

H 

1 
1 
MJ 

i 

JL 

In. 
1.84 
3.77 
1.65 
0.75 
4.01 

g 

1 

1 

I 

Goalparah  Assam                            

o 
26 

27 
27 
24 

32 
27 

Feet. 

383 
370 
6,952 
2,010 
52 

0 

61.7 

60 
42.2 
62.7 
49.9 
56 

In. 

0.42 
1.18 
0.76 
0.42 
4.07 

0 

61  0 
64.1 
43.8 
67.1 
53.7 
«ig  5 

In. 

0.76 
2.43 
1.60 
0.52 
3.46 

0 

72.6 
69.3 
52 
73.7 
56.7 
57  5 

0 

77.6 
73.8 
58.7 
85.6 
64.2 
64.5 
70 
72 

In. 

4.85 
10.15 
3.62 
0.42 
4.06 

Seehsaugor  A  ssam  

Darjeeliri0' 

Charleston  S    C  - 

Fogau,  China  

23 

60 

58 

0.65 
0.67 

59 
60 

1.20 
1.70 

65 
65 

3.14 
2.15 

M  acao  

May. 

June. 

July. 

August. 

September. 

1- 

B 
Pi 

1 

H 

c 

i 

H 

13 
_g 

§ 

t 
1 

G 

1 

i 
i 

H 

1 

g 

1 
1 

3 

1 

Goalparah,  Assam  

Seebsau<ror,  Assam                   

0 

76.0 

78.5 
62.1 
88.6 
72.7 
77.5 
77 
78 

In. 
11.72 
11.04 
7.01 
1.37 
4.06 

"ii.'ss 

11.85 

o 
80.3 
82.4 
63,7 
83.8 
78.8 
77.5 
82 
82 

In. 

23.  72 
15.  56 
27.50 
10.99 
5.28 

io.ii) 

11.  10 

o 
82.1 
83.6 
64.9 
77.8 
82.3 
86.5 
82 
83 

In. 
21.33 
14.87 
29.40 
14.  63 
7.40 

"ii'35 

7.75 

0 

81.6 
83.5 
64.4 
79.3 
79.8 
84 
82 
83 

In. 

12.69 
13.88 
29.09 
11.44 

7  Q1 

7.31 

"ii.'so 

9.90 

o 
80.5 
83.1 
63 
77.5 
75.4 
81 
80 
81 

In. 
10.93 
11.13 

18.06 
6.26 
6.09 

12.5' 
10.92 

Darjeeling 

Hazoreebaugh,  Chotauagpore 

Charleston,  S  C 

Fogau.  China  
Canton  and  Macao  China 

Macao 

October. 

November. 

December. 

Annual  av- 
erage. 

f 

Tempera- 
ture. 

1 

H 

1 

1 

i 

1 

G 

H 

1 
P4 

1 

1 
H 

1 
H 

g 

H 

i 

i 

I 

a 
1 

0 

48 

0 

Goalparah,  Assam  77  5 

In. 

5.61 
4.46 
6.5€ 
3.51 
4.3<J 

69 

69.4 
49.4 
j     64.8 
1     58.9 

!     68 
68 

In. 

0.39 
1.29 
0.20 
0.  If 
3.  2ti 

2.  42 

0 

64.6 
62.4 
44.7 

;    61.4 

51.  9 
57 
59 
59 

Tn. 

0.20 
0.69 
0.14 
0.02 
3.62 

0.19 
0.97 

o 
73.8 
74 
55.9 

74.5 
66 
70 
72 
71 

In. 

94.44 
90.  45 
V.  9.  50 
50.  52 
56.98 

In. 

7.87 
7.54 
10.  78 
4.21 
4.75 

0 

97 

Scebsaii"'or  Assam                              f8  3 

Darjeeling  57.  3 
Hazorerhangh,  Chotauagpore  .  .      72.  () 
Charlesion.  S.  C  67.7 
Fogau,  China  ....                          72 

80 
107 
104 

28 
44 
10 

Canton  and  Macao,  China  77 
Macao                                                   77 

6.  51 
6.  50 

78.  96J     6.  58 
70.62     5.88 

94 

29 

632      REPORT  OF  THE  SECRETARY  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

Aver  aye  temperature. 


Winter. 

Spring. 

Sum- 
mer. 

Au- 
tumn. 

Whole 
year. 

Nangasaki  Japan                                   *  ....     .... 

0 

46 

o 
5f> 

o 
81 

0 

70 

o 
63 

58 

71 

83 

75 

71  7 

26  42 

56  30 

89  58 

54  3l) 

54  09 

In  regard  to  the  climate  of  the  Chinese  tea-producing  provinces,  Mr. 
Samuel  Ball  has  afforded  the  following  information  in  "  The  Cultiva- 
tion and  Manufacture  of  Tea  in  China:" 

The  quantity  of  rain  which  falls  at  Canton  and  Macao  during  the  southwest  mon- 
soon (May  to  October),  Avheu.the  winds  come  charged  with  moisture  from  the  sea, 
amounts  to  67.85  inches,  whereas  during  the  northeast  monsoon  (November  to  April), 
when  the  wind  blows  over  the  laud,  there  falls  11.11  inches;  thus  making  the  total 
quantity  78.96  inches.  But  the  annual  quantity  which  falls  at  Peking  is  only  27.98 
inches.  Hence  it  appears  that  the  southerly  winds,  in  their  passage  over  this  exten- 
sive Empire,  deposit  the  moisture  with  which  they  are  saturated  gradually  and  less 
copiously  as  they  advance  to  the  north,  till  finally  both  one  and  the  other  become 
exhausted  as  they  reach  Peking.  *  *  In  the  center  of  these  two  extremes,  Pe- 

king and  Canton,  and  between  the  latitude  23°  and  33°  north,  the  tea  plant  was 
found  indigenous  at  a  remote  period  of  the  Chinese  history.  This  comprises  the 
central  as  well  as  the  most  populous  and  flourishing  provinces  of  the  Empire,  and 
includes  that  part  most  suitable  to  its  growth,  and  where  it  is  found  to  flourish  in  the 
present  day.  In  this  division  of  the  country  between  north  latitude  27°  and  31° 
are  also  situated  the  districts  connected  with  the  foreign  trade,  whence  the  greater 
part  of  the  tea  most  esteemed  by  the  Chinese  is  also  procured  for  their  home  con- 
sumption. 

In  the  green-tea  country,  situated  in  the  district  of  Wheychew-fu,  north  latitude 
29°  58'  30",  from  December  until  March  the  weather  continues  cold;  frost  frequently 
prevails,  and  snow  occasionally ;  water  freezes  in  the  house.  In  July  the  summer 
regularly  sets  in,  and  the  intensity  of  the  heat  is  equal  to  that  of  Canton.  *  * 
The  Bohea  (black  tea) 'country,  in  Fokien,  dirt'ers  little  from  the  Hyson  districts  in 
point  of  temperature.  The  tea  nieu  describe  the  cold  as  less  severe,  and  the  fall  of 
snow,  as  well  as  the  thickness  of  the  ice  as  somewhat  less.  *  *  *  At  Amoy  (lati- 
tude 24°  27'  36"),  which  is  a  tea  district  producing  teas  suitable  to  the  foreign  mar- 
kets, and  some  of  very  delicate  flavor,  the  temperature  seems  hardly  to  vary  from 
that  of  Canton.  Annual  mean  temperature  was  69.7°,  the  lowest  temperature 
marked  being  49°  and  the  highest  90°. 

The  preceding  remarks  are  sufficient  to  show  that  severe  frost  and  occasional  snow 
prevail  in  the  tea  districts,  and  on  some  occasions,  though  rare,  so  late  as  the  vernal 
equinox.  Yet  there  is  reason  to  believe,  on  average  of  seasons,  that  the  frost  is  not 
very  intense  or  of  long  duration. 

CLIMATIC  REQUIREMENTS. 

We  may,  therefore,  assume  that  a  deficiency  in  one  of  the  conditions 
usually  insisted  upon  as  being  requisite  for  successful  tea  cultivation, 
viz,  an  equable  and  rather  elevated  temperature  and  somewhat  exces- 
sive rainfall,  does  not  preclude  the  establishment  of  that  industry  on 
a  safe  foundation.  It  is  probable  that  the  strength  of  tea  may  be  con- 
siderably impaired  by  a  material  deviation  in  Avhat  is  regarded  as  the 
normal  climate;  it  may  not  serve  to  fortify  weak  teas,  but  there  is 
ground  for  hope  that  it  may  occupy  an  independent  position,  at  least 
in  a  country  where  the  strongest  teas  are  not  relished  and  where  a 
delicate  flavor  is  highly  appreciated  by  a  sufficiently  large  class  to  war- 
rant the  fullest  deference  to  its  demands.  So  far  as  concerns  any 
American  tea  that  is  likely  to  be  produced  during  the  next  generation 
or  two,  there  will  be  no  occasion  to  look  beyond  our  own  markets,  and 
at  present  they  are  almost  wholly  supplied  from  China  and  Japan.  If, 
therefore,  it  be  contemplated  to  cater  to  the  American  taste,  it  must 


Tea  Report,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture,  1892. 


PLATE  I. 


Tea  Report,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture,  1892. 


PLATE  II. 


Tea  Report,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture,  1892. 


PLATE  III. 


ASSAM  HYBRID  TEA  PLANTS  AT  PINEHURST,  THREE  AND  A  HALF  YEARS  OLD  AND  LESS, 
SHOWING  VARIATION  IN  SIZE  OF  LEAF  AND  GENERAL  VIGOR  OF  GROWTH. 


SPECIAL    REPORT    ON    TEA-RAISING    IN    SOUTH    CAROLINA.    633 

surely  prove  more  remunerative  to  manufacture  an  article  similar  to 
those  in  use  here,  rather  than  to  imitate  (even  if  it  were  possible)  the  more 
pungent  Indian  teas,  which  at  present  are  only  slightly  imported.  It 
is  said  that  the  tea  from  Formosa  commands  the  highest  price  in  this 
country,  but  some  fine  grades  from  Ceylon  and  India  find  a  high  price 
in  rather  limited  quantities,  the  former  being  generally  preferred. 

It  should  not  be  understood  that  the  attempt  to  produce  strong  as 
well  as  delicate  teas  has  been  abandoned  at  these  gardens.  The  best 
writers  on  tea  concede  that  delicacy  of  flavor  and  strong  raspiness  do 
not  go  together.  The  ideal  beverage  should  possess  both  strength  and 
flavor,  as  may  be  attained  by  picking  only  the  youngest  and  tenderest 
leaves  and  a  generous  application  of  manure. 

The  idea  that  a  colder  climate  than  the  Bengalese  plains  (it  being 
immaterial  whether  the  result  of  a  greater  elevation  or  a  higher  lati- 
tude), and  one  that  may  be  regarded  at  least  as  healthy,  is  not  suited 
to  the  production  of  the  largest  crops  of  superior  teas,  seems  to  have 
been  refuted  by  the  experience  of  the  mountain  gardens  of  Ceylon; 
but  special  stress  is  laid,  in  this  case,  on  the  richness  of  the  soil  as 
compensating  for  the  deficiency  in  temperature.  That  ordinarily  severe 
cold,  as  evidenced  by  ice  and  snow,  seriously  curtails  the  annual  yield 
there  can  be  no  doubt,  be  it  from  the  shortness  of  the  growing  season 
or  the  too  intense  hibernation  of  the  plants;  nor  is  it  probable  that  the 
most  generous  cultivation  can  atone  for  an  extreme  winter.  It  is  to 
be  regretted  that  further  meteorological  data  are  not  at  hand.  Never- 
theless it  may  be  urged  that  the  citations  given  above  afford  a  reason- 
able basis  for  the  hope — which  is  the  corner-stone  of  our  undertaking — 
that  the  climate  of  this  section  does  not  necessarily  proscribe  success 
in  establishing  a  successful  tea  industry  here.  It  is  anticipated  that 
natural  deficiency  in  some  directions  must  be  counterbalanced  by  ex- 
traordinary artificial  stimulation  in  others.  But  it  ought  not  to  be 
regarded  as  stranger,  should  ultimate  success  crown  our  efforts,  that 
unusual  care  and  attention  can  compel  the  remunerative  cultivation  of 
tea  outside  of  its  natural  zone  any  more  than  in  the  case  of  tobacco 
and  many  other  crops. 

QUALITY  OF  THE  TEA  PRODUCED. 

This  past  summer  some  of  the  Pinehurst  plants  were  sufficiently 
advanced  to  warrant  picking  the  leaf.  The  great  majority  of  them  had 
been  raised  from  seed  in  1889,  and  set  out  that  autumn.  A  limited 
number  were  a  few  months  older.  They  belong  to  the  "Assam  hybrid" 
variety,  i.  e.,  the  cross  between  the  Assamese  and  Chinese  sorts,  and 
came  from  stock  that  had  been  thoroughly  acclimated  by  probably 
thirty  years7  growth  in  this  country.  The  plants  had  been  systemat- 
ically "topped"  with  garden  shears  and  afterwards  carefully  pruned 
with  a  knife  during  the  winter  of  1891-'92,  and  throughout  their  growth 
had  been  carefully  cultivated  and  generously  manured.  (Plates  i-in.) 
They  covered  small  areas  on  various  soils,  viz,  underdrained  pond  and 
high  swamp,  the  slope  of  a  clay  hill,  and  a  flat,  sandy  pine  land.  So 
free  had  been  the  artificial  enrichment  of  all  of  these  plats  that  no 
material  differences  in  the  quality  or  quantity  of  yield  were  observed. 
It  was  designed  to  test  by  these  first  experiments  whether  commercial 
tea  could  be  raised  at  all.  Below  are  given  the  results  from  picking 
and  curing  such  leaf  as  appeared  to  be  suitable  for  manufacture,  and 
might  be  spared  without  impairing  the  subsequent  luxuriant  develop- 
ment of  the  plants. 

A  proper  regard  for  the  space  that  can  be  allowed  this  article  necea- 


634     REPORT  OF  THE  SECRETARY  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

sarily  limits  the  publication  of  the  reports  which  have  been  received 
from  those  who  have  tested  the  Pinehurst  tea  of  1892.  As  the  Assam 
hybrid  leaf  is  better  adapted  for  the  manufacture  of  black  (i.  e.,  fer- 
mented) tea,  that  mode  of  preparation  was  followed.  It  is  not  claimed 
that  all  the  responses  were  equally  enthusiastic,  but  all  were  favorable. 
Some  of  the  experts,  as  might  have  been  expected,  did  not  hesitate  to 
express  the  doubt  whether  the  Pinehurst  teas  would  find  favor  in  their 
sections  of  country.  But  we  shall  be  pardoned  if  only  the  more  flat- 
tering testimonials  are  published,  especially  as  it  is  our  object  to 
demonstrate  that  superior  teas  may  be  grown  here. 

(1)  Letter  from  Hon.  Edwin  Willits,  Assistant  Secretary  of  Agri- 
culture, dated  November  2,  1892 : 

I  wish  to  say  that  we  are  very  much  pleased  with  the  samples.  Not  only  this, 
but  we  sent  a  sample  to  the  traveling  agent  of  a  large  tea  firm  in  Detroit  for  his 
judgment,  advising  him  as  to  where  the  tea  was  produced.  He  took  the  tea  to  the 
store,  and  without  giving  them  any  information  with  regard  to  the  same,  it  was 
tested  by  two  of  the  leading  members  of  the  firm,  each  making  a  separate  test. 
They  pronounced  it  very  excellent  English  breakfast  tea,  and,  as  I  recollect,  claimed 
that  it  was  better  than  any  breakfast  tea  they  had  in  the  store,  or  at  least  equally 
good ;  and  when  the  information  was  given  them  as  to  the  place  of  production  they 
were  very  much  surprised  and  wished  to  know  if  any  considerable  amount  could  be 
purchased. 

(2)  Letter  from  Mr.  N.  W.  Burchell,  of  Washington,  D.  C.,  under  date 
of  July  16,  1892: 

The  No.  2  tea  is  the  best  American  tea  I  ever  saw,  and  would  bring  at  wholesale  a 
good  price.  If  sold  as  American  tea,  and  thereby  creating  a  sentiment  for  a  season 
or  so,  it  would  bring  more  than  the  same  high  grade  of  India  tea. 

(3)  Opinion  of  Mr.  Gillet  Gill,  of  Martin  Gillet  &  Co.,  the  celebrated 
tea  merchants  of  Baltimore,  Md.,  as  published  in  the  Sun,  of  that 
city,  and  other  papers : 

The  first  marketable  tea  ever  produced  in  the  United  States  was  brought  to  Balti- 
more to-day  by  Charles  U.  Shepard,  of  Snmmerville,  S.  C.,  who  grew  and  cured  the 
plant  on  his  farm.  The  American  tea  was  tested  by  Mr.  Gillet  Gill,  who  pronounced 
it  equal  to  the  best  high-grade  English  breakfast  tea  and  superior  to  many  grades 
that  come  from  India  and  China.  The  samples  brought  here  by  Mr.  Shepard  are 
all  of  one  quality  and  character — black,  crisp,  and  well  scented.  It  makes  a  strong 
beverage.  This  quality  of  the  American  tea  is  said  by  Mr.  Gill  to  be  due  solely  to 
its  treatment  in  fermentation  and  curing.  Other  methods  of  curing  the  American 
product  will  produce  tea  similar  to  the  several  brands  that  come  from  India  and 
China.  Judging  from  Mr.  Shepard's  samples.  Mr.  Gill  says  he  believes  the  success- 
ful growing  of  tea  in  the  United  States  is  established,  and  that  the  industry  should 
be  encouraged  and  fostered. 

(4)  Opinion  of  Mr.  Charles  Kerr  Eeid,  tea  expert  and  merchant,  of 
Philadelphia : 

Picking  of  June  14,  season  of  1892.  Report  on  samples  from  the  four  grades  into 
which  the  tea  was  sifted  : 

No.  1.  Rather  handsome,  rather  small,  even  blackish  leaf  with  Pekoe  flower. 
Strictly  extra  fine  tea;  strong,  full,  and  rich  South  Carolina  Pekoe  flavor.  Value, 
32  to  35  cents  wholesale. 

No.  2.  Blackish,  even  leaf,  with  a  few  Pekoe  tips.  Fine  to  extra  fine  tea;  strong, 
brisk  South  Carolina  Souchong  Pekoe  flavor.  Value,  25  to  30  cents  wholesale. 

No.  3.  Rather  bold,  evenish,  curled  black  leaf;  middling  tea  (or  preferred),  strong, 
brisk,  fresh-burnt  South  Carolina  Souchong  flavor.  Value,  22  to  25  cents  wholesale. 

No.  4.  Bold,  black,  uneven  curly -leaf  middling  tea;  rather  strong,  fresh-burnt 
South  Carolina  Souchong  flavor.  Value,  20  to  21  cents  wholesale. 

The  retail  prices  are  generally  more  than  double  the  wholesale  on  the 
finer  grades,  and  from  50  to  100  per  cent  higher  on  the  lower  qualities. 
Mr.  Eeid  has  kindly  added  the  following  remarks: 

Your  teas  I  find  have  an  individual,  distinct,  and  pronounced  character,  different 
from  the  teas  of  any  other  country,  consequently,  I  describe  their  character  flavor 


SPECIAL    REPORT    ON    TEA-RAISING    IN    SOUTH    CAROLINA.    635 

as  "South  Carolina  flavor."  They  have  merit  nntl  intrinsic  value  of  a  high  order. 
I  have  very  much  pleasure  in  offering  you  my  sincere  congratulations  on  the  com- 
plete success  of  your  enterprise  in  having  produced  from  the  soil  of  the  United  States 
of  America  the  commercial  article  "tea  leaf/'  equal  in  style  and  value  and  on  a  par 
with  the  fine  teas  of  the  world. 

(5)  Concerning  the  best  of  these  samples,  and  after  submitting  it  to 
a  thorough  trial,  a  friend  in  Xew  York,  who  was  formerly  and  largely 
interested  in  the  tea  trade,  has  written : 

It  is  good  original  stock  aixd  is  unusually  well  prepared ;  has  all  the  character- 
istics of  an  Indian  or  Ceylon  tea,  and  is  particularly  brisk  or  toasty  in  firing,  which 
is  desirable.  I  am  inclined  to  believe  that  it  is  better  tea  than  Tettley's,  which  is 
sold  in  dry  goods  stores  at  50  cents  for  a  half-pound  package;  that  would  make  the 
original  value  before  packed  somewhere  about  35  cents  per  pound. 

The  same  authority  subsequently  wrote  in  reference  to  some  similar 
teas  of  a  later  manufacture: 

The  sample  B,  as  well  as  the  sample  which  I  valued  in  New  York  at  38  cents,  in- 
terested  me.  Yours  is  not  a  showy  tea,  but  has  the  "  solid  merit,"  holding  its  line 
quality  in  taste  as  it  becomes  cold;  it  is  what  we  would  call  a  "  deceptive  tea"  to  the 
tea-tasters,  not  to  the  consumers,  and  if  the  consumer  were  once, accustomed  to  it, 
he  would  think  other  teas  trash,  which  the  tea-taster  might  have  called  "only  a 
trifle  poorer." 

Based  on  Mr.  Reid's  valuations,  100  pounds  of  Pinehurst  tea,  divided 
into  classes  by  sifting,  should  have  the  following  valuation,  viz : 


Yield. 

Value. 

Whole- 
sale. 

Retail. 

No.  1  passed  through  one-t'ourteeiitli-inch  openings 

Pounds. 
16.00 
30.00 
52.  50 
1.50 

$5.36 
8.25 
12.34 
.30 

$10.  80 
16.50 
19.19 
.49 

Mo.  2  passed  through  oiie-ciglith-inch  openings  

No.  4  coarser  than  the  above  sizes  

Total 

100.00 

28.25 

46.98 

The  result,  then,  of  sorting  by  size  of  finished  leaf  is  to  obtain  a  bulk 
valuation  of  28J  cents  per  pound,  or  47  cents  retail  price  in  the  larger 
cities ;  in  the  country,  the  latter  price  would  be  from  60  cents  upward. 

As  an  interesting  fact'  may  be  mentioned  that  the  picking  of  August 
22,  1892,  was  prepared  as  a  whole — that  is,  without  division  by  sifting. 
Concerning  it  Mr.  Reid  reported,  "  Rather  bold,  rather  uneven,  curly 
black  leaf,  with  bloom  and  Pekoe  flower.  Fine  tea,  rather  rich,  strong, 
brisk,  malty,  Pekoe  touch  and  flavor.  Wholesale  value  in  this  market  in 
bulk,  30  to  32  cents;  retail  value  in  the  same,  about  60  cents." 

Very  truly  has  Col.  Money  remarked,  in  referring  to  the  teas  made 
by  Mr.  Jackson  in  this  country,  "No  reason  why  the  teas  should  not  be 
good;"  and  we  hope  later  on  to  successfully  combat  his  further  sugges- 
tion, "  but  the  labor  difficulty  will,  I  think,  prevent  tea  paying  there." 

YIELD   OF   TEA. 

Col.  Money  gives  the  following  estimate  of  the  probable  yield  per  acre 
on  flat  land,  good  soil,  in  a  good  tea  climate,  and  with  hybrid  plants,  if 
really  high  cultivation  and  liberal  manuring  is  carried  out : 


636      REPORT  OF  THE  SECRETARY  OF  AGRICULTURE. 


Tear. 

Tea  per 
acre. 

Year. 

Tea  per 
aero. 

First                                   

Pounds. 
0 

Sixth 

Pounds. 
400 

Second      -  

0 

Seventh    

480 

Third 

40 

Eighth 

500 

Fourth 

160 

K4nth 

600 

Fifth 

320 

Tenth                -f 

640 

The  Pinehnrst  plants  had  been  set  ont  at  greater  distance  than  is  the 
practice  in  the  East,  with  the  object  of  substituting  cultivators  and 
plows  drawn  by  mules  for  hand  labor  and  the  spade.  After  making 
due  allowance  for  this  difference  and  for  average  vacancies  (where 
plants  have  died),  and  thus  estimating  the  production  by  the  same 
number  of  plants,  we  find  the  average  yield  of  the  Pinehurst  gardens 
for  the  past  season  to  have  reached  about  37^  pounds  of  (cured)  tea  per 
acre.  Of  the  earlier  "  flushes  "  (as  the  successive  crops  of  young  and  ten- 
der leaf  are  called),  purposely  very  little  was  picked;  of  the  midsum- 
mer ones  we  were  careful  to  confine  the  picking  to  the  smallest  leaf, 
and  in  the  autumn  at  least  one  abundant  flush  was  permitted  to  remain 
on  the  bushes.  In  other  words,  the  standard  production  as  laid  down 
by  Col.  Money  might  readily  have  been  attained.  Indeed,  in  view  of 
subsequent  events,  it  would  have  been  better  to  have  picked  the  late 
(October)  flush,  as  probably  thereby  we  might  have  prevented  the 
florescence  of  the  plants,  with  all  of  its  attendant  drain  on  their  re- 
sources, and  the  subsequent  entailed  cost. of  picking  off  the  incipient 
seed  in  order  to  prevent  the  yet  further  exhaustion  of  the  bushes  by 
its  full  development  through  the  next  season.  But  we  will  assume 
that  the  Indian  grower  exercises  as  much  care  with  his  own  gardens, 
and  we  will  rest  our  case  on  the  actual  figures  submitted. 

The  results  at  Pinehurst  are  all  the  more  gratifying  as  they  were 
obtained  on  plants  exhibiting  great  difference  in  form  and  luxuriance 
of  growth  and  in  flushing.  The  seed  from  which  they  sprang  had 
been  brought  from  India  long  before  the  inauguration  of  the  recent  suc- 
cessful attempt  to  raise  the  grades  of  those  teas  by  a  judicious  selection 
of  seed  and  most  careful  cultivation.  From  the  gardens  now  being  es- 
tablished at  Pinehurst,  and  in  consequence  of  the  great  care  bestowed 
on  their  composition,  it  is  hoped  to  obtain  much  finer  teas  in  the  future. 

The  results  obtained  at  Pinehurst  during  the  past  summer  are  cer- 
tainly gratifying,  and  yet  the  partial  success  already  achieved  carries 
with  it  great  anxiety  as  to  the  future.  The  summer  of  1802  was  spe- 
cially favorable  for  the  growth  of  tea,  and  the  bushes  made  great  strides 
under  the  influence  of  abundant  rain  in  the  picking  season.  The  rain- 
fall was  as  follows  for  that  period,  viz:  May,  3.03  inches;  June,  10.32 
inches;  July,  10.33  inches;  August,  4.73  inches;  September,  to  28th, 
11.77  inches;  for  picking  season,  40  inches.  The  meteorological  statis- 
tics for  this  region  do  not  extend  the  hope  of  the  frequent  repetition 
of  such  weather.  Then,  again,  who  can  tell  how  soon  some  detrimental 
or  even  fatal  blight  may  attack  our  gardens?  This  does  not  appear 
probable ;  butthe  red  spider  or  some  other  wretched  enemy  may  suddenly 
swoop  down  and  create  great  destruction.  For  the  present,  the  plan 
is  to  develop  the  utmost  luxuriance  of  growth  on  the  part  of  the  better 
plants  and  to  extirpate  all  feeble  bushes. 

PROFIT   OR  LOSS. 

It  is  as  yet  too  early  in  our  experimentation  to  exhibit  calculations 
as  to  the  cost  of  production.  Our  gardens  are  small  (altogether  not 


SPECIAL  REPORT  ON  TEA-RAISING  IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA.       637 

exceeding  12  acres),  and  under  no  circumstances  capable  of  bearing 
the  "fixed  charges,"  which  with  little  advance  might  apply  to  a  much 
larger  acreage.  For  the  immediate  future  there  is  no  necessity  of 
erecting  and  conducting  a  regular  factory  such  as  may  be  found  on 
almost  all  Indian  and  Ceylonese  plantations;  although  it  would  be  de- 
sirable to  impart  to  all  tea  the  uniformity  of  preparation  which  the  per- 
fected machinery  of  to-dfiy  affords.  With  the  substitution  of  steam 
machinery  for  hand  labor  and  the  attendant  economy,  and  an  enlarge- 
ment of  the  gardens  to  warrant  such  outlay,  the  difference  between  the 
actual  cost  of  Asiatic  and  American  teas  would  be  reduced  to  those 
manual  operations  in  the  field  where  it  is  impossible  to  replace  hand 
labor  by  machines.  Nor  has  the  public  had,  as  yet,  an  opportunity  of 
forming  an  opinion  on  the  merits  of  American  tea,  and  as  an  industry 
it  must  rely  on  the  patronage  of  our  people. 

It  is,  however,  natural  to  presume  that  some  "ciphering"  on  the 
question  of  profit  has  been  indulged  in.  With  some  misgivings,  but 
nevertheless  that  this  article  may  not  be  incomplete  in  this  respect,  we 
submit  the  following  (hoped-for)  estimate  of  the  expense  involved  in 
raising  and  curing  a  pound  of  tea  in  this  section,  if  the  future  results 
corroborate  those  of  the  past.  The  following  quotation  is  taken  from 
an  article  recently  prepared  for  "American  Gardening:" 

Estimated  cost  of  tea  to  be  produced  at  Pinehurst,  when  the  gardens  shall  pro- 
duce at  the  rate  of  400  tooOO  pounds  per  acre  and  per  annum,  and  after  the  intro- 
duction of  machinery,  whenever  it  is  possible  to  substitute  it  for  manual  labor: 

Cents. 

Picking  leaf 6. 00 

Withering  leaf 0.  50 

Rolling  by  machinery 1. 50 

Breaking  roll  and  sifting  by  machinery 0.  50 

Firing  by  machinery 0.  50 

Packing  and  boxes  (in  India,  2  cents) 4.  00 

Cultivation  of  land 5.  00 

Incidental  expenses 2.  00 

Cost  per  pound  of  (cured )  tea 20.  00 

This  estimate  does  not  include  the  proper  fixed  charges,  which  must  amount  to  a 
large  sum  by  the  end  of  the  sixth  year  after  planting  a  garden,  when  under  favora- 
ble conditions  the  outlook  should  equal  400  pounds  of  (cured)  tea. 

The  reader  must  decide  whether  this  exposition  of  the  present  out- 
look of  the  Pinehurst  farm  is  sufficiently  encouraging  to  warrant  the 
rather  roseate  predictions  that  its  friends*  have  indulged  in;  as  also 
whether  there  is  justifiable  ground  for  anticipating  the  successful  es- 
tablishment of  an  American  tea  industry. 

The  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture  has  kindly  consented  to  place  on 
exhibition  at  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition  some  of  the  Pinehurst 
teas. 

EFFECT  OF  INTENSE  COLD  ON  TEA  PLANT. 

Beginning  with  the  27th  of  December,  1892,  and  terminating  January 
22,  1893,  an  exceptionally  long  period  of  intense  cold  prevailed  in  the 
South  Atlantic  States  and  produced  a  marked  effect  on  the  local  tea 
gardens.  Although  considerable  injury  followed  this  cold  wave,  it  was 
well  that  this  severe  test  should  have  been  encountered  thus  early  in 
the  experiment,  especially  if  the  proper  lessons  can  be  drawn  from  the 
unusual  experience. 

Mr.  L.  N.  Jesunofsky,  observer  in  the  Weather  Bureau  at  Charleston, 
has  very  kindly  prepared  the  accompanying  table,  which  demonstrates 


638      REPORT  OF  THE  SECRETARY  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

in  a  very  lucid  manner  the  exceptional  duration  of  this  winter's  cold. 
The  table  permits  the  following  important  deductions: 

December,  1S92. — The  mean  of  three  consecutive  coldest  days  was  27°  F. ;  lower 
than  any  record  for  the  same  month. 

The  number  of  days  with  a  mean  daily  temperature  below  32°  F.  was  2,  only 
equaled  in  1872.  The  minimum  temperature,  25°  F.,  was  surpassed  only  in  1876  (23° 
F.)  and  1880  (13°  F.).  The  number  of  days  with  minimum  temperature  below  32° 
F.  was  5;  only  surpnssed  in  1872  (7  days),  1876  (10  days),  and  1880  (6  days). 

January,  1893. — The  mean  of  three  consecutive  coldest  days  was  24°  F.,  only  sur- 
passed in  1886  (20°  F.).  The  number  of  days  with  a  mean  daily  temperature  below 
32°  F.  was  5,  surpassed  only  once  in  1886  (6  days).  The  minimum  temperature,  20° 
F.,  was  surpassed  in  1873  (19°  F.),  1884  (13°  F.),  1886  (10°  F.),  and  1887  (17°  F.). 
The  number  of  days  of  minimum  temperature  below  32°  F.  was  13,  which  is  far  beyond 
any  previous  record. 

o  r. 

The  mean  temperature  for  January  for  twenty-three  years  was 50 

The  mean  temperature  for  January,  1886,  was 43 

The  mean  temperature  for  January,  1803,  was 43 

The  coldest  December  was  in  1876 44 

The  coldest  January  Avas  in  1886  and  1893 43 

The  coldest  February  was  in  1886 48 

January,  1886,  was  regarded  as  the  coldest  weather  experienced  for  fifty  years. 

If  the  weather  for  thirty  days  from  December  27, 1892  (inclusive),  be 
compared  with  any  of  the  above  records,  it  will  be  seen  that  its  mean 
temperature  is  39.8°  -P.*  Thus  there  is  ample  ground  for  believing 
that  the  duration  of  extremely  cold  weather  in  the  winter  of  1892-793 
was  larger  than  any  year  of  which  there  are  records. 

The  cold  was  much  more  severe  at  Pinehurst  than  in  Charleston,  as 
the  folio  wing  notes  show: 

The  week  following  Christmas  was  very  cold,  so  that  much  ice  was  formed  and  the 
ground  frozen  to  the  depth  of  about  an  inch  for  several  mornings,  although  in  the 
afternoon  it  generally  thawed  out.  The  week  January  8  to  15  was  also  cold,  so  that 
all  pruning  was  abandoned  for  the  time  being.  But  the  week  January  15  to  January 
22  has  been  unusually  severe,  as  the  following  observations  show :  Saturday,  Janu- 
ary 14,  17°  F.  at  8  a.  m. ;  Monday,  January  16,  20°  F.  at  8  a.  m. ;  Tuesday,  Janu- 
ary 17,  14°  F.  at  7  a.  m. ;  Wednesday,  January  18,  18°  F.  at  7  a.  m.  On  the  18th 
2-£  inches  of  snow  fell  in  the  forenoon,  followed  by  sleet  in  the  'afternoon,  and  the 
whole  was  frozen  in  the  early  night.  Thursday  forenoon  all  vegetation  was  covered 
with  ice,  and  of  such  weight  as  to  cause  great  destruction  among  the  largest  trees 
(yellow  pine  and  oaks)  of  this  region. 

Freezing  weather  continued  steadily  until  Friday  afternoon,  when  a  slight  thaw 
occurred.  Ice  covered  all  the  tea  bushes  until  Saturday  afternoon,  and  those  in  a 
sheltered  position  until  Sunday,  the  22d,  at  midday.  The  cold  weather  continued 
with  frozen  ground  every  morning  until  Wednesday,  January  25.  The  depth  of 
frost  in  the  ground  rarely  exceeded  2  inches. 

The  effect  of  the  prolonged  cold  upon  the  tea  gardens  has  sufficiently 
developed  since  the  return  of  the  usual  winter  weather  and  the  occur- 
rence of  several  showers,  so  that  now  it  may  be  possible  to  judge  of  the 
injury  inflicted. 

Quite  young  plantations  have  suffered  considerably  by  the  loss  of 
their  tenderest  leaves;  but  they  will  probably  recover  almost  entirely, 
with  the  exception  of  one  garden  of  very  tender  and  young  Ceylon 
plants,  which  have  been  very  generally  killed  to  the  ground.  These 
last  may  spring  up  again  from  the  roots.  Nevertheless  enough  of 
these  plants  have  survived  the  trial  to  furnish  abundant  material  for 
propagation  by  cuttings  another  autumn,  so  that  there  shall  be  a  garden 
devoted  to  the  most  hardy  of  this  tender  and  valuable  variety.  Partly 
from  a  belief  that  the  location  of  the  Ceylon  tea  garden  was  unusually 
exposed  and  partly  from  our  confidence  that  by  a  judicious  mulching 

*  This  is  half  a  degree  lower  than  the  mean  temperature  of  the  thirty  days  (Janu- 
ary 9  to  February  8,  inclusive),  covering  the  phenomenal  cold  of  1886. 


SPECIAL  REPORT  ON  TEA-RAISING  ltf.§bj[TT4  "Q-AROLIN/A;'      639 


with  pine  straw  during  the  first  wiiitrs/£eHofcS'  9$&jjp.tt$pf  be 
averted,  even  on  the  repetition  of  the  weatner  o'f*l§92-'93,  several 'acres 
are  now  being  planted  with  the  best  Ceylon  tea  seed. 

Other  seedings  and  young  plants,  particularly  in  exposed  situations, 
have  not  infrequently  lost  their  top  foliage;  but  the  loss  is  inconsider- 
able, although  involving  the  retardation  of  their  development. 

Among  the  larger  and  older  plants  the  injury  from  the  cold  weather 
shows  itself  in  two  directions,  viz,  a  splitting  of  the  bark  of  the  trunk, 
whereby  the  latter  becomes  denuded  and  the  plant  dies.  This  form  of 
damage  has  happened  to  not  exceeding  1  or  2  per  cent,  but  the 
plants  thus  affected  were  (as  might  be  expected)  among  the  thriftiest 
and  finest  in  the  tea  gardens.  The  other  injury  was  the  loss  of  the 
youngest  leaves  and  twigs  on  plants  of  apparently  greater  suscepti- 
bility. But  it  does  not  seem  to  involve  further  destruction,  except  in 
comparatively  few  cases.  Very  careful  examination  of  the  older 
gardens  shows  that  the  total  loss  from  cold  during  the  past  winter  is 
decidedly  less  than  5  per  cent  of  the  total  plants. 

The  location  and  drainage  of  the  tea  gardens  are  of  the  first  impor- 
tance in  climates  where  there  is  liability  to  such  extreme  cold.  Even 
tender  Assam  survived  the  experience  of  this  winter  where  sheltered 
by  trees  from  the  wind  and  on  a  dry  hill.  It  may  be  well  to  avoid 
encouraging  by  autumnal  manuring  the  growth  of  plants  during  the 
winter  where  it  is  apt  to  be  cold. 

TABLE  1. — Showing  frequency  of  prolonged  periods  of  low  temperature  at  Charleston,  S. 
C.,  for  January,  February,  and  December,  1871,  to  date  (January,  1893),  inclusive. 

[Furnished  for  C.  TJ.  Shepard,  M.  D.,  Summerville,  S.  C.] 


Tear. 

January,. 

FeVnary. 

December. 

<D 

>• 

\i 

K.  +1 

•+-  o> 

! 

I.; 
1 

H 

II.  —  No  of  days  mean  daily 
temperature  below  32°. 

* 
N 
9 
Pi 

a 

o> 

p 

_q 

M 

H 

V.  —  No  of  days  minimum 
temperature  'below  32°. 

1 

1 

Is, 

il 
*1 

? 

1.  —  No.  of  days  mean  daily 
temperature  below  32°. 

A 

(_l 

cc 

PH 

a 
*» 

P 

q 

i 

M 
H 

TV.  —  No.  of  daya  minimum 
temperature  below  32°. 

0> 

11 

«  -u 

vj 

I1 
a 
I 

II  —  No  of  days  mean  daily 
temperature  below  32°.  * 

A 

t-t 
e 

P< 

a 

<o 
«a 

S£ 
p  5 
s  ~ 
'3 
§ 

M 
M 
M 

Is 
il 
&i 

'i 

°2 

o  ® 

T& 
J* 

H 

Days. 
4 
7 
2 
0 
1 
10 
0 
2 
0 
6 
0 
3 
1 
2 
2 
5 
2 
2 
0 
0 
1 
5 

1871     

O 

42 
35 
35 
46 
39 
39 
36 
38 
32 
50 
34 
40 
38 
29 
39 
20 
29 
41 
39 
47 
43 
41 
24 

Davs. 
0 
tl 

1 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
2 
0 
0 
0 
0 
2 
0 
6 
2 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
5 

o 
28 
25 
19 
29 
30 
28 
26 
30 
23 
33 
30 
26 
25 
13 
28 
10 
17 
26 
2«J 
36 
32 
2& 
20 

Days. 
-    2 
5 
5 
2 
5 
1 
5 
3 
7 
0 
0 
1 
1 
5 

8 
8 
1 
1 
0 
0 
5 
13 

o 
47 
40 
45 
44 
38 
43 
44 
44 
"43 
46 
38 
46 
49 
48 
36 
31 
49 
44 
39 
47 
47 
46 

Days. 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
0 

1 

2 
0 

o 

0 
0 
0 
0 

O 

36 
30 
33 
36 
28 
31 
35 
32 
30 
36 
26 
32 
39 
28 
22 
]3 
34 
28 
26 
39 
29 
32 

Days. 
0 
3 
0 
0 
5 
1 
0 
0 
2 
0 
4 
0 
0 
1 
3 
4 
0 
2 
1 
0 
1 

o 
38 
33 
41 
47 
43 
33 
43 
38 
46 
31 
4? 
38 
41 
39 
42 
35 
40 
34 
52 
55 
43 
27 

Dcys. 
0 
2 
0 
0 
0 
1 
0 
0 
0 
1 
0 
1 
0 
0 

2 

0 
0 
0 
0 
0 
2 

0 

26 
25 

27 
33 
25 
23 
33 
25 
34 
13 
33 
24 
29 
26 
28 
25 
29 
28 
37 
34 
29 
25 

1872 

1873                   

1874 

1875  ,  

1876 

1877  

1878 

1879  

1880 

1881  

1882 

1883  

1884 

1885  

1886 

1887  

1888 

1889  

1890     . 

1801  

18'  »2  . 

1893 

640  REPGRJT    OF    ME    SECRETARY    OF    AGRICULTURE. 

"  '  .         r     $ol(t periods  and  extent. 


1«72,  Dec.  9  to  16  and  22  to  31. 

1875,  Feb.  4  to  10. 

1876,  Jan.  12  to  15. 

1877,  Jan.  1  to  5. 

1881,  Jan.  1  to  4;  Feb.  2  to  7. 
1884,  Jan.  2  to  10  and  20  to  23. 


1885,  Jan.  17  to  23. 

1888,  Jan.  5  to  18;  Jan.  25  to  Feb.  9;  Dec.  2  to  8. 

1887,  Jan.  1  to  13 ;  Dec.  26  to  31. 

1888,  Jan.  17  to  30. 
1892,.  Dec.  27  to  31. 
1893,  Jan.  6  to  25. 


Record  of  thickness  of  ice  formation  as  recorded  in  Weather  Bureau  Daily  Journal  by  the 

observer,  L.  N.  Jesunofsky. 

j892,  Dec.  27.  J-inch  ice  formation  this  a.  m. 

28.  TVjnch  ice  formation  this  a.  m. 

29.  jb-inoh  ice  formation  this  a.  m. 

30.  Very  thin  ice  formation  this  a.  m. 
1893,  Jan.    W.  -jVinch  ice  formation  this  a.  in. 

7.  J-inch  ice  formation  this  a.  m. 

9.  Very  thin  ice  formation  this  a.  m. 
11.  TVinch  ice  formation  this  a.  m. 
14.  TVinch  ice  formation  during  last  night  and  this  a.  m. 

16.  TVinch  ice  formation  daring  last  night  and  this  a.  m. 

17.  jVinch  ice  formation  during  last  night  and  this  a.  m. 

18.  T40-iiich  ice  formation  during  last  niirht  and  this  a.m. 
18.  Snowfall  9:18- a.m.  to  3:08  p.m.;  total  depth,  1.9  inches. 

20.  TVinch  ice  formation  during  last  night  and  this  a.m. 

21.  TVjnch  ice  formation  during  last  night  and  this  a.  m. 

22.  TVinch  ice  formation  during  last  night  and  this  a.  in. 

NOTE. — Observations  on  thickness  of  ice  made  between  7 :15  a.  m.  and  8 :15  a.  m.  daily. 

L.  K.  JESITNOFSKY, 
Obaervcr,  Weather  Bureau. 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  DATE 
STAMPED  BELOW 


AN  INITIAL  FINE  OF  25  CENTS 

WILL  BE  ASSESSED  FOR  FAILURE  TO  RETURN 
THIS  BOOK  ON  THE  DATE  DUE.  THE  PENALTY 
WILL  INCREASE  TO  SO  CENTS  ON  THE  FOURTH 
DAY  AND  TO  $t.OO  ON  THE  SEVENTH  DAY 
OVERDUE. 


..     -''•'  T 


LD  21-100m-7,'33 


YC  61862 


co 

H1 
Q 

<s 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


